The French expression “tirer le diable par la queue” translates literally to “to pull the devil by the tail”.
English meaning:
- to live hand to mouth
French meaning:
- vivre sans peu de ressources – to live with few resources
Example sentence:
- La réalité c’est que la plupart des américains tirent le diable par la queue : le rêve américain deveint impossible à atteindre. The reality is that the majority of Americans live hand to mouth and that the American dream is becoming impossible to reach.
Related:
- un/une précaire (noun) – person who’s job is unstable
- précaire (adjective) – unstable, insecure (with regards to jobs and income).
